Vulnerable
by prince zuko3
Summary: A/U modern Avatar: When Jin leaves Zuko for an unknown guy his life is sent spiralling down, stuck in a world of drug use the only one who can save hims is Mai. rated T for drug and alcohol usage. Maiko x Kataang x Sukka x the Doph
1. Chapter 1

**Hey everyone this idea came to me after reading i believe its chapter 5 of**_ lunar calling's_** maiko week submission which i unfortunately missed. As with her, i do not support the use of drugs or smoking in any shape or form, unless it's for medical reasons and you have permission from a doctor. So please don't read this story and take it that it is a cool thing to do, because it will make you nothing but a douche. I also do not support drinking large amounts of alcohol for no reason at all.  
>so if you didn't get the obvious hints above, this story will involve drug use, smoking, and alcohol use but don't worry, its not going to be a stupid story, it will result in becoming something like my original pieces. <strong>

**Okay so this is going to be a A/U set in modern 2011 times.  
>starts as a kataang, sukka, doph and zukojin story. But don't worry, it won't stay that way, it will become a maiko at some stage.**

**character ages.**  
><strong>zuko 18<strong>  
><strong>mai 17<strong>  
><strong>aang 16<strong>  
><strong>katara 16<strong>  
><strong>sokka 18<strong>  
><strong>suki 17<strong>  
><strong>azula 16<strong>  
><strong>ty lee 16<strong>  
><strong>jin 17<strong>  
><strong>haru 18<strong>  
><strong>toph 16<strong>  
><strong>the duke (nicknamed tuke) 17 (stayed back a year.)<strong>  
><strong>jet 21<strong>  
><strong>long feng 22 (xD)<strong>  
><strong>Iroh 64<strong>  
><strong>ozai 51<strong>  
><strong>ursa 45<strong>

**so shall we begin? See you at the bottom.**

**Disclaimer i don't not own avatar the last airbender, the basic plot of this story, or the car mentioned. Bryke, lunar calling and dodge own them in that order.**

**Vulnerable.  
>Chapter one. <strong>

**Simple serenade.**

* * *

><p>Dumping the text books that weren't needed for the nights study into his locker, Zuko swung his back pack over his shoulder and took off out the main building, hoping to get a glance at his girlfriend before returning home for the night, of course he would be able to talk to her over the phone once he had finished with his homework, but nothing was the same as hugging her.<p>

Zuko and Jin had been together for three months, and as it seemed they were obsessed with each other. But things not being as they seem, at first glance you saw love, but if taking a long, hard look at the couple you could see the strong amounts of suffering that the pair was enduring at the hands of the other. But poor Zuko could never get past the first glance, he never noticed that her smile was missing the love that it had when they first got together, her eyes missing the shine she had when she looked at him. All he saw was the act, the fine act that she had been working on, in high hopes of getting past the struggle they were in and into the love they had once shared. But she had tried, and Zuko being oblivious to it all did nothing but to ease her efforts. Drastic actions were to be taken soon.

Zuko scanned through the car lot quickly, having not seen her anywhere he made his way towards his car, a black 2011 dodge charger, a present from his father Ozai for his 18th birthday just four months before. He clicked the button on his key and the lights flicked, with the push of another button the door automatically opened a few inches, something his father had paid extra to have installed, just one of the many pricy adjustments made.

Twenty minutes later he arrived home to see his father's white hummer being loaded with bags and suitcases, as well as a large box, which content was unknown to Zuko, but what he did know, was it was that time again when Ozai went to Canada on a four to six month business trip. Before Ozai would hire a nanny or get his brother Iroh to look after his son and daughter, but since Zuko's 18th he had shown much more faith in his children.

This would be the first business trip Ozai went on without getting someone to watch his children.

Zuko parked his car on the nature strip just outside his mansion like home, leaving space for the departing hummer and Porsche.

Zuko climbed out of the car, clicking the button once again over his shoulder before walking through the gate and onto the arch shaped drive way, that led through one gate and out the other, with a double garage on each side, one for Ozai's cars, and one for his son and daughter. While in the middle of the garages a three story house, designed by Ursa herself before she divorced Ozai. Zuko's room was on the third floor, as well as his recording studio, study room, and indoor pool, the second floor, much larger than the third, held at back of the house Azula's bed room, as well as at the front Ozai's much larger master bed room. And all the normal house hold rooms taking up the rest of the space, while the first floor, consisted of nothing but a large open foyer like room with two large entertainment rooms on either side and at the back the large kitchen. The house was the biggest on the block and had white stone walls around its entire perimeter, not only the house was large but the back yard too, a small garden shed stood behind two large trees, a large decking area built coming out of Zuko's rec room that was in the top right corner of the yard, right at the back, and a huge in ground pool for everyone's use.

"Hey dad" Zuko said to his father who was still busily attempting to tetris all his belongings into the back of the hummer.

Without looking up Ozai mumbled a greeting, nothing more, nothing less.

Zuko walked through the large double doors of his home and through the foyer to the kitchen, he heard his sister and one of her friends gossiping in the lounge room, he had never paid her friends any mind, he had met one of them once, when they accidently ran into each other as Zuko was coming down the stairs, she was cute in a way, but nothing that really meant anything to him.

Fetching himself a drink and a sandwich Zuko made his way up the staircase and into his room, dropping his bag on the floor next to his desk he walked across the room to his bed and sat down. He pulled out his phone and smiled when he saw that he had three unread text messages from Jin.

_Hey Zuko, we need to talk, its kind of important, can i come over tonight? – jin_

Zuko i don't know what your doing, but i need your answer please? – jin

thats it im coming over, i don't care if Ozai orders the police to get me out, he may be the governor but not even he can stop me from seeing you tonight. – jin

Zuko chuckled at the last message, Jin's attempts at making threatening comments had never ceased to entertain him. What he didn't know was that he had taken the message the wrong way.

* * *

><p>It was six thirty two when Ozai left the property, his business partner Zhao driving the hummer while he followed behind in his Porsche.<p>

And it was six thirty nine when Jin arrived. Zuko met her at the gates with open arms, she shook her head and that surprised him, he lent forward to kiss her but she looked away, making him place a kiss on her cheek. "Whats wrong?"

"Zuko i need to talk to you." She stated looking him dead in the eye, her jaw set in a straight line.

"Sure babe" Zuko stated, his love for her still blinding him from what was coming.

"Zuko, its over." She paused for a moment, Zuko's smile was gone but he didn't look sad, his mouth mimicked her own, set in a thin line.

"Wh-what?" He stuttered, a fist clenching around his heart, squeezing it and drinking all the blood from his face. His already pale skin was almost ghostly.

"I don't want you anymore." She looked him dead in the eye "There is someone else."

Zuko felt the hand release his heart for a split second only to punch him in the gut before gripping his aching heart and tearing it from his chest.

He started to cry then, the tears coming out in nothing but thin lines down his cheeks. "Jin" He muttered, his voice small and weak.

Broken.

She turned away from him then and walked back to her car, that was the first time Zuko noticed the young man in the front seat, if able to control his feelings he would have gone over there and beaten the guy senseless for stealing her from him, but he couldn't. He fell to his knees, the tears having stopped and a haunting numbness over taking the remainder of his body.

Almost twenty minutes later he pulled himself up from the grass and walked back through the gates, he looked up to see a tall girl standing on the porch. He noticed he had never seen her before, and if his eyes hadn't been blurred by the tears he had left there he would have looked at her much more closely.

"You okay?" Her voice was raspy, like it had been unused in a long time. But yet, it didn't stop the shiver that went down Zuko's spine next.

"No."

He continued past her and through the foyer, he noticed Ty lee and Azula looking at him from the entertainment room on the right of the door but he ignored them, making his way up the rest of the stairs and slamming his door shut, pushing the lock into place he sat down at his desk, the numbness still there, smothering his body in its presence. He took out his English books and began work on his essay, it was all he could do to take his mind off of Jin.

That was the first time he saw Mai.

* * *

><p><strong><br>okay guys thats the first chapter, i do plan on writing more, thats just the break up of zuko and jin, i told you, they wouldn't be apart of it for long.**

**so from the story. Zuko's family is rich, Ozai isn't an evil dickhead, and hes a relatively nice parent, who is now gone on a 4-6 month long business trip, azula doesn't hate zuko, but they don't get along that great.**

**jin was cheating on him with some unknown guy.**

**mai is looking out for him, although they never met before their small talk.**

**yes zuko is in a band, more info on that later.**

**and the reason zuko has such a large amount of the house, compared to azula, is because she owns a holiday house on ember island.**

**there is no bending in this story at all.**  
><strong>toph isn't blind.<strong>  
><strong>aang isn't vegetarian.<strong>  
><strong>umm, yeh just stuff like that mainly will be given more detail later on.<strong>

**and zuko does have a scar, he got it from his home being robbed and his head being held over a open fire stove top. – poor zu zu.**

**and for zuko's car, type in black 2011 dodge charger, and its the one with a little flaming guy in the bottom right.**

**i know this chapter is short, just wanted to end it here, and i will continue writing, and possibly upload two chapters tonight.**

**also the idea for the name came from my current fav song vulnerable by secondhand serenade. – hence the chapter name too.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey again, back with chapter two, this will be where things really become hard for Zuko, so i hope you enjoy.**

**Vulnerable**  
><strong>chapter two: Bad road.<strong>

* * *

><p>The numbness that had over taken him earlier that evening still haunted his presence, he wasn't upset, he wasn't angry, yet he couldn't forget it, he didn't feel anything. Now and again he would begin a series of violent shaking, but that soon passed. He lay almost lifelessly on his bed, trying not to think of anything, just trying to let the numbness over take his mind as well, maybe then he could forget the nightmare he believed he was living.<p>

Zuko had began crying again around three hours after the break up, it started off as silent sobs, before breaking out into heart breaking tears as well as moans of sadness emitting from the young man.

He could hear Ty Lee and Azula talking in her room directly below his, he didn't hear that raspy, delicate voice again, but he knew she was still there, she must be one of Azula's friends that always came over, even on school nights.

which it was tonight.

Thursday night.

Zuko was worried then, he would have to go to class, see her in physics, see her around the school during their breaks, and all the while act like he was okay.

Of course there would be people to help him right?

Right?

* * *

><p>The next morning Zuko woke in the corner of his room, arms wrapped around the knees that had been drawn to his body. He was still wearing his clothes from the night before.<p>

Walking down the stairs and into the kitchen he saw Azula sitting at the head of the dining table, Ty Lee to her right, and the girl from the night before to her left, her back to Zuko.

"Ahh Zu Zu, good to see you amongst the living." Azula stated calmly, hoping to not upset her older brother more, yet with that hint of sibling mockery.

Zuko made no attempt at replying and looked at the clock, _6:43_, without thinking he pored himself a bowl of cornflakes and walked into the entertainment room to the left of the front door.

Out of habit he spooned the cereal into his mouth without tasting any of it. A few minutes later he heard two sets of footsteps float up the stairs, thinking Azula had stayed behind to tease him about his current state, he was surprised to find a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, people can help you" It was the same raspy voice from the night before, he looked up into her pale golden eyes for the first time, after a few minutes he still found his gaze locked on the young woman before him. A slight, very slight smile played at his lips. "Zuko, you're staring."

His head almost exploded when she said his name, and then the blood rushed to his cheeks as the rest of what she said made it too his ears. "Sorry."

She removed her hand then and walked back towards the stairs to meet up with Azula.

As she was leaving Zuko couldn't help but look back at her, the slight sway of her hips, the covered skin from the jacket and pyjama pants she was wearing, the long, shiny raven black hair that sprawled down the length of her back to just an inch above her waist.

She was stunning.

Suddenly the numbness was gone, and the pain was back, he gripped at his chest as the violent shaking took over his body once again. He needed a way to clear his mind from Jin, he walked up to the second floor and into his father's bed room, through the large room and into the adjourning bathroom to the left of the room. He pulled open the medicine cabinet and scanned through all the items that belonged to his father.

There on the second shelf sat a small white bottle, Zuko picked it up and read the label. _Medium strength Morphine. _It was exactly what Zuko had came for, his father needed the pain relief when he had torn ligaments in his upper arms while working out two years previous. Zuko popped the lid open and placed two pills into his mouth, with the aid of water he swallowed them both.

* * *

><p>Having decided to skip the first half of school Zuko sat in his room. His head spinning and his mind all over the place. He had fallen asleep a few hours after the morphine kicked in, and although he had no idea what had happened during those few hours, he knew that he hadn't had a single thought about Jin, but he wouldn't be able to turn up to school in the "out of my god damned mind" state.<p>

The drugs had lost their effect and he was left with a large head ache, and almost no memory of what he had done two hours earlier. He pulled on a red hoodie and a pair of black jeans. He walked down to the bottom floor, with the pills tucked into his pocket he made his way out into the warm spring air and into the garage.

He drove to school, he was still numb even after the morphine had worn off, but he knew he wouldn't be able to stay that way all day, there was still four hours left of school. He parked in the student lot, and walked into the general office to sign himself in, being a senior over the age of 18 signalled that parent permission to sign in late wasn't needed, only the students.

He walked though the courtyard and into his current class, Art. An old favourite of his, in which he had taken up every year of high school. He sat in class, as he took his seat, after explaining his lateness the numbness of his heart began to wear through, and he felt his heart being dragged into oblivion, tears pricked at his eyes.

A few people looked in his direction, some feeling the pain he was reflect back in their own hearts while others, the more mean members of the class, looked away, small smirks on their faces.

But Zuko took no notice; it was suddenly like his heart was breaking in two all over again. As he was becoming worried that his tears would run down his face in front of everyone the bell rang. He darted from the class and towards the parking lot. He pulled open his door, and sat in the driver's seat. He rested his forehead against the steering wheel as the tears began their constant flow down his cheeks.

He was startled when he heard the passenger door gently close beside him, he looked up. And she was there, Azula's friend, _Angi I must learn her name._She had a small frown on her face as she looked down at him she could tell his vision was slightly blurred once again by his tears but she didn't care. She still hopped he got the message that she was there for him.

"Hey" She muttered, her voice holding no emotion.

"Hi" His on the other hand broke completely and his head dropped back onto the steering wheel with a loud thud.

"You're not read to be here, are you?" Zuko noticed the slightest hint of sadness in her voice, it was slight, but still there.

"No, i-i'm not" His voice was deep, but not quite as deep as usual, his normally husky voice had taken on a hint of higher pitch, almost a pleading tone.

"Then why are you?" she looked at him then. Her face so pale, so delicate, and yet so beautiful.

"Because I can't let people think of me as though I'm weak."

Her heart picked up then, that was the first time she had heard him say a full sentence, and his voice was almost hypnotising. Her heart slightly fluttered and she felt the heart rush to her cheeks. "I don't think you're weak. In fact I know you're strong."

"then you're thinking of the wrong guy." His voice sounded so weak then, that it almost convinced her that he had given up. But she was stubborn.

"Im coming over tonight to talk to you, it seems that if you're left alone you could so something stupid." And with that she climbed out of the car and back into the car lot, walking towards her locker to collect the books for her next class.

Zuko realized then that there was no way he could finish the day at school. He walked back to the general office, somehow being able to lie long enough for them to believe that he had a stomach virus and could send him home without him having to wag, which he would of done in the case of them not believing him.

He drove home slowly, taking the long way through the small forest that bordered the large town. The drive normally calmed him, but he couldn't handle the shaking in his hands, the slight swivel as his hands shook a little violently while he drove.

Eventually he made it home, and parked in the garage, he made his way into the house and up into the top floor where he removed his clothes down to his trunks and walked into the large indoor pool room. He opened a few windows to let fresh air in, and pulled a latch that opened and 2x2 meter sunroof that went over the pool itself. He walked into the nearby pool storage room and came out with a large blow up floating lounge chair, he threw it into the water and climbed on top of it, and that was where he laid for two hours, simply thinking about how his life was changing already, and how it would change more in the coming weeks

He soon found himself asleep, sometimes the weak current in the pool would bring him into the direct rays on the sun, other times it would keep him in the cool shade of the house.

* * *

><p>Getting a lift home with Azula, Mai made her way up to the third floor of the house, first she looked in the bedroom, and then the recording studio, until she found Zuko, still asleep on the floating on the blow up chair, mmoving slowly across the pool. She walked into the pool supply room, and looked around for something she could throw at Zuko to wake him up. Noticing a beach ball in the corner, she picked it up and returned to Zuko's pool room.<p>

Mai had known Azula since preschool, and although they had never really gotten along, Azula had attempted to keep them close for as long as possible. In the earlier years of their "friendship" Azula had been far more trusting, but as she grew older, she took a path that made her believe that not everyone could be trusted, a year after she got that stuck in her mind, her father Ozai took her to a therapist, there, he told her that she was going down a bad road, but what he didn't tell her, and only told Ozai, is that he believes Azula may be going insane, due to the trauma of her mother's sudden departure.

Mai didn't really care.

She threw the beach ball at Zuko, who at first didn't notice, but a few minutes later his head jerked up in her direction.

"Hey" She called to him, a small smile on her lips.

"Hey" He called back, sleep obvious on his tongue.

"Mind if i join you?" she asked innocently, she had seen him this way before, at one of the many pool parties he had thrown over the years, which Azula of course dragged her along to.

"sure"

"Just a minute." Since Mai practically lived at the house during the weekends, and visited almost every night, she had her own wardrobe set up on the second floor, as did Ty Lee, and Jin once had a wardrobe there, but not after Zuko set fire to it with a lighter his father left behind. Mai walked over to her personal wardrobe and pulled out a pair of female boarding shorts, and her bikini. She walked through to the adjoining bathroom and changed out of her casual dress and into the bathing attire, pulling the shorts over the bottom of her two piece bathing set.

When she returned to the pool Zuko was sitting on the floating seat, slightly rocking, slightly shaking, and definitely hurting. The sudden wave of pity for the young man hit her then and she climbed into the 1.5 meter deep pool and walked/swam over to him. "Zuko don't think about her, she's not worth your time."

She noticed a single tear rundown his undamaged cheek, he let it sit there for a moment before wiping it away. "I know" Was all his said.

Mai sighed, she had came over to help Zuko forget about Jin, and she would do whatever she could to do just that. So she pushed him off the floating chair and into the water.

A few moments later Zuko pulled his head out of the water and glared at Mai. "Hey! What the hell was that for?"

"I came her for some fun Zuko." Mai smirked, "And i plan on getting it." She picked up the beach ball from earlier and threw it at him once more.

This time he managed to dodge and went under the water for a few moments, finally resurfacing her threw the ball back at her, catching her off guard as it hit her on the left shoulder.

"How was school?" Zuko asked in an attempt to her more of her mesmerising voice.

"You know, boring as always, but I guess I can't complain, there was some entertaining parts." There was little enthusiasm in her voice, heck there was little emotion at all, but Zuko enjoyed hearing her voice anyway.

There was a small smile on Zuko's lips as the two ate pizza -that Ty Lee had brought to them- on the small dining table in Zuko's room. "So, when will I see you next?" Zuko asked, after finishing his second piece, since the time he had spent with Mai his mood had seemed to change, he never even thought of Jin or what she could be doing, or who.

"Im not sure, my dad got a Job somewhere out of town, i think he said Omashu, as the governor or something, i wasn't really listening. But i think i may be moving there for a few months, until my aunt moves back here from her holidays on whale tale island." Mai's slight smile had left her pretty face, and was replaced by a grimace. "I don't want to go."

"Oh." Zuko's mood had changed back again, he hadn't really noticed at first but he and Mai and established a slight connection, and now, it just felt like everyone was leaving him, first his mother, then a few years later Jin, and now, Mai. The girl he had just met, the girl he had just started caring about.

The girl he didn't want to ever leave him.

It was silent between the two for a few minutes before the sound of the door swinging open and footsteps brought them out of their silent thoughts.

"Zu zu, Mai, I want to go to a party." Azula stood in the door way, arms crossed under her chest, while Ty lee stood smiling ear to ear at her left hand. "Get dressed, we are leaving in an hour."

She walked out then and both Mai and Zuko groaned, although they both knew they didn't have to go, they would be better off going instead of listening to the sound of her angry complaints afterwards.

Zuko found a simple pair of dark grey jeans as well as a white singlet and his thin maroon hoodie. "I don't want to go." He said to no one in particular.

He walked down to the first floor where Mai, dressed in a simple purple dress that cut off at middle of her thighs, and clung to her body with a black jacket. Azula, dressed in tight burgundy skinny jeans and a light grey blouse and knee high ugg-boots. While Ty lee wore a simple pink flowing dress with a simple white flower on her right ear.

"So everyone's ready." Azula asked a little more excited than she would usually be for a simple party.

Getting a simple yes response from Ty lee and a nod from the other two Azula turned and walked out into the warm spring night air. "Zu zu your driving." She called back as Zuko walked out last and locked the front door.

Azula pulled out her car key and pushed the button to open the automatic garage door.

The four teens piled into Zuko's dodge and he drove to the edge of the drive way, Azula in the front passenger seat to give directions.

"which way Azula?" Zuko asked clean annoyance in his voice.

"This way" Azula said pointing left of the house, Zuko pulled out of the drive way, turning when Azula said to and stopping at the lights, compared to his normal driving style, he was much more "pedestrian safe" as his father liked to call it.

"Who's house is this?" Ty lee asked looking at the two story red and white elegant home.

"It belongs to Chan and Roun-Jian, you know, those guys we met a few years ago on ember island, they are visiting their Grandparents, who tonight are away on holiday for the next two days." Azula smiled softly and walked ahead, Ty lee at her side.

"Im sorry, am I missing something?" Mai asked quietly to Zuko. "I never met these two."

"She was referring to herself and I, we met them on our last family trip to ember island." Hate edging at the teens personality.

"Old friends?"

"Defiantly not"

"This will be interesting." Walking though the door the two teens joined Azula where she was introducing herself to a group of surfer looking teens.

"Azula, its good to see you." Chan's voice came from a small door way to there left. "And Zuko, I see you have grown up a fair bit, and who is this?" Chan said oogling Ty lee.

Roun-Jian walked out next, a slight flick of his hair his only communication towards the two teens he had previously met before, before fixing his eyes on Ty lee before moving away to look at Mai, where he kept his eyes for a few moments, simply looking.

Zuko silently fumed, and he had no idea why.

* * *

><p><strong>so thats it guys, still another short one but its over 3000 words this time, i hope you enjoy.<strong>  
><strong>the gang will be introduced soonish, and whats this about mai leaving ?<strong>

**Well as you can tell Zuko is happy around Mai, well a little more then he is with out her, and if you have read lunar calling's idea (which is where i got this idea from so go check it out guys and girls) then you will know zuko goes through a REALLY tough stage, and that will happen again.**

**the band will be introduced and actually get involved soon, so don't worry about that too much.**

**so zuko and azula have met chan and roun-jian. I actually never intended on using the two at first but they kind of just appeared, i actually never planned on the party, so i guess i have to include their ages.**

**roun-jain – 18**  
><strong>chan- 18<strong>

**pretty simple, and because i cant remember if i included it before or not.**

**haru – 17**

**so thats hopefully easy enough to remember.**  
><strong>peace out guys. 3<strong>  
><strong>-princezuko3<strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**Vulnerable**

**Chapter three:  
>the beach.<strong>

* * *

><p>Chan led the four new arrivals to the back of the house, out onto the veranda leading out into the beach, the waves lightly crashed against the shore, and the few fire lit torches that Chan had previously set up along the beach towards the water gave off a soft orange glow. Along the waves a few specks of colour were the only signal that there were a few surfers enjoying the late spring air.<p>

Roun-Jian followed closely behind the group, trying to keep way from Zuko as much as he could, while still being able to be close to Mai. Finally Chan stopped, he had led them all behind a large sand-dune, obstructing anyone's prying eyes, where a few logs sat around a dimly lit fire, something that the previous users of the spot had left burning.

"So, Azula, _Zuko _how have things been?" Chan said as he took a seat, saying Zuko's name like it was a curse he shouldn't be speaking of.

"Well, I don't like to brag, but things have been great for me, but I guess we can't say the same for poor Zu Zu over there." She paused for a moment before continuing in a slightly softer tone, "Jin broke up with him."

"Poor Zuko" Roun-Jian stated clearly sarcastic, "Must be so hard for you" And with that he took a seat on the log next to Mai, who had sat next to Zuko, While Azula sat next to Chan with Ty lee beside her.

Zuko just made a 'huffing' sound and ignored the other boy, clearly uninterested in the torment. Mai meanwhile shifted closer to Zuko, placing her hand on his shoulder he looked up into her sympathetic eyes. He cracked the slightest of smiles before turning away towards the fire.

Roun-Jian, clearly displeased that his mean intentions had gone unnoticed tried to push for more, hoping to anger the other teen. "So, what did you do, since _you're_always ruining everything?" Roun-Jian lightly laughed before continuing, "She probably caught you cheating or something, such a Zuko thing to do." He laughed much louder then, clearly enjoying himself now.

Zuko looked down at the sand around his feet, a single tear rolling down his cheeks before causing the smallest splash on the surface of the sand.

No one else noticed the tear, no one except Mai. She stood slowly, pulling Zuko up with her. He looked into her eyes slightly confused but got the message, she started walking back up towards the house, and he followed, her hand never once leaving his. As they reached the base of the stairs leading onto the decking Roun-Jian ran up and grabbed Zuko, pulling him back and causing Mai to fall back slightly from the sudden jerking movement, Zuko caught her with one hand while stabilizing himself with the other, he shot Roun-Jian a glare before staring down at Mai, making sure everything was alright.

"Mai, go inside for a moment." Zuko's voice was still weak with sadness but also demanding, she flinched slightly at the change in his mood and did as she was told, walking in and standing just inside the door. Roun-Jian stood a few feet away from him, a smirk glued to his face while his body was obviously ready for a fight, both his fist clenched at his sides and his feet slightly spread apart.

Zuko stood up straight then and looked him dead in the eyes, a dark glare on his face causing the smirk to seem more like a grimace on Roun-Jian's face.

Everything seemed to slow down as Roun-Jian threw a punch, aiming high at Zuko's face, caught off guard by the sudden attack the punch landed in the lower jaw of his face, retaliating Zuko grabbed a hold of Roun-Jian's collar and laid three consecutive well placed and forceful punches into the face of the teen, who fell to the floor holding his cheek where the majority of the blows had impacted. Swinging his leg up Zuko landed a kick in Roun-Jian's chest causing him to fall onto his back.

Zuko took a step towards the downed boy as Chan came bounding around the corner, clearly the larger member of the two party runners, Chan's large fist connected to Zuko's damaged cheek causing him to stumble towards a deck chair which he managed to fall over and break. He stood slowly before running at Chan and tackling him, but in mid attack he managed to pick Chan up and ram him into one of the large wooden beams holding the house up off the sand.

Survival instincts over took the scared boy as he repetitively threw punches at Chan's face and upper body. A few moments later he felt a cool hand on his shoulder and he turned to see Mai, no expression on her face, shaking her head at him, "Let's go Zuko" She said quietly as she turned to leave.

Normal instincts took over once again and he looked to see Chan's face, blood flowing slowly from somewhere around his left eyebrow, and a small cut on Roun-Jian's cheek. He got his composure and followed Mai back through the house and found Azula and Ty Lee on the street in front of his car waiting.

"Well Zu Zu, that was some show I must admit, too bad you had to ruin my fun with Chan."

* * *

><p>The four drove home together, Azula driving while Zuko sat in the back with Mai, clearly still angry about the party, something had clicked in him when he saw that Roun-Jian had endangered Mai, although it was nothing serious, she was only two feet up the ground, three stairs up to be exact, falling back wouldn't have caused that much damage.<p>

But the possibility of it sent shivers up his spine causing anger he hadn't felt in his life over take his body.

Surprisingly it was Mai who broke the silence. "How are you feeling now?" She said it as almost a whisper, but due to their being no sound as Azula sped down the highway it sounded like she was yelling.

It took Zuko a few moments to realise she was talking to him, his mind had been all over the place, he had been thinking a lot about the better times with Jin, and that brought pain to him, and as it became too much he would think about the day he had spent in the pool with Mai, but that would bring his thoughts back to the party, which unfortunately brought his thoughts back to Jin.

"Hmm, just thinking."

Mai lightly nodded her response, her eyes giving him the knowledge that they would speak more about the issue in private later.

A few moments passed before it was Azula who spoke up, "So Mai, Ty Lee, I take it you will be staying at our house again tonight." It wasn't much of a question; it never was when she asked.

"Of course Azula" Ty lee said in her always energetic voice.

"Sure" Mai's voice was almost a drawl, almost. There was the slightest hint of emotion on her voice, sympathy almost. And Azula knew it wasn't for her, it was for Zuko, and Zuko only.

* * *

><p>"Zuko you need to calm down" Mai's voice was soft but demanding, causing Zuko to look away from the sand in which he had been pacing on and into her eyes. Azula had decided to drive them to the docks, it was around 11:30 when they arrived and the final boat of the day was just leaving port. Zuko's car was loaded onto the large boat and the four left for Ember Island with nothing more than the clothes on their backs and a few hundred dollars between them. They were gathered on the private section of the beach that was located around the house owned by Azula, a gift from her father for her 13th birthday, since he never used it anymore anyway.<p>

Zuko had spent so long pacing back and forth that his barefoot prints were lost amongst themselves.

Zuko turned his eyes away from Mai once more and continued to pace. _Left... Right... Left... Right... _"Zuko!" Mai said his name much louder now, catching his attention instantly, he looked towards her, shame on his face for ignoring her.

"Im sorry"

"Sit down"

"Yes Ma'am" Zuko took a seat on the log beside Mai, much like the set up they had with Roun-Jian and Chan just a few hours before, a much larger fire burning around four much larger and actually slightly carved logs.

"Wow Mai, I have never seen Zu Zu apologise when he's in a mood like this." Azula stated with mock wonder and curiosity. "Maybe you have a stronger effect on him then we previously believed."

Mai slightly blushed, and only Zuko could make it out due to the fire already making her face seem liked it was glowing orange. "Zuko listens to me, and I listen to Zuko"

"Aww that's so sweet" Ty lee almost screamed from her log across from Mai and Zuko. The blush in Mai's cheeks grew slightly and she looked down at the sand.

Zuko stood up and walked towards the large beach house. He heard light footsteps behind him to see Mai following closely behind, he smiled lightly to her before continuing his walk through the house and into his room, when he turned to close the door he realised Mai was standing there, as if waiting for permission to enter.

She looked down at her feet and blushed slightly again. "Come in" Zuko said softly, a small smile on his lips as he waited for her to walk in, and closed the door behind her, he walked towards the bath room and Mai heard the sound of tap water running into the bath.

Zuko closed the door to the bath room and removed his pants, sticking his legs into the warm water he proceeded to wash the sand from his feet and legs, making sure to remove the stubborn grains from between his toes. He then found a towel and dried his legs before pulling on a fresh pair of grey tracksuit pants and traded his grey v-neck shirt for a white singlet.

He returned to the bedroom portion of his room where he found Mai stretched out on the bed in a black tank top and white shorts which she had been wearing under her other robes which were now discarded somewhere in the room. "Hey" She said quietly, while she had a small smile on her lips.

"Hey"

Zuko walked towards the mini bar he had in his room, something he had brought along with him the first time he came to the island when he was 7, his father had told him that he had hired a personal chef to cook their meals, and Zuko wouldn't be allowed to go into the kitchen until late at night when the chef had gone home for the night, and he then brought both Azula, and Zuko a mini fridge each, and every time they visited they were given $250 to stock it with everything they needed for the duration of their stay. Since Azula was given the house the chef was only needed when Azula called for her, but Zuko had continued to keep the mini fridge in his room, it helped him when he wanted to shut out the rest of the world, and there for not go to the kitchen.

He pulled out two cans of soda and a box of chocolates that he had stored in there. Mai joined him on the red love seat and Zuko passed her a can and placed the chocolates on the coffee table. "So" Zuko began hoping to start an interesting conversation, when he remembered that Mai was leaving for Omashu in a few days. "...Omashu"

It was all he could say, his quickly improving mood now became much dimmer. He had become friends with Mai quite quickly, and he didn't want her to leave, even if it was only for a few months.

Mai placed her soda on the table and looked back at Zuko. "Omashu" Was all she said, but Zuko could tell by her voice that she didn't like the idea either. He looked into her eyes and there was no emotion, the smile gone, the happiness all gone, all that was left was an emotionless mask.

"You don't want to go do you?" Zuko had noticed the change in her mood too and he was hoping that he had guessed right.

"No, but my mother has always taught me to be respectable of what others need, father needs this, and there for so do I and my mother. But I still don't care, it took all the persuasion both I and my uncle could muster up to convince my parents to send me back to live with my uncle's wife, my aunt." Her raspy voice seemed to make every word seem like it was being said by a goddess, so mesmerising, so soft, and yet so firm. He loved to hear it.

"I'll miss you" He didn't mean to say it, honestly he didn't even know he was thinking it, but as soon as it escaped his lips he knew it was true, he would dearly miss Mai, during her few months of being away.

Her smile was quick to return, it was only a small one, that's all it ever was, "I'll miss you too Zuko."

He looked deep into her eyes once more, the smile that occupied his face for a few moments left and he looked away.

_I am not falling for her... Am I? _

Mai looked back at the table before deciding to take a chocolate; she was never the kind of person to skip out on food, she always ate when the food was set out for her, or when she decided to get something for herself. "But I'll come back, promise" She placed the small piece of chocolate in her mouth and savoured the taste for a few minutes before swallowing.

"I'll wait for you" If she hadn't have been looking at his lips as he said the words it would of been impossible for her to make them out, lucky she had spent the later years of her childhood studying peoples facial reactions as well as their body reactions, she had become so good at it, that she could almost make out entire conversations people were having just by the way their lips were moving.

She looked at him and smiled, he was looking down at the coffee table, but she didn't care, Zuko seemed to be able to bring a smile to her face without even realising it, just by saying what he did her entire mood could be improved, or on the rare occasion ruined.

They continued talking for another half an hour, both drinking another soda and finishing the chocolate before Zuko walked Mai the short distance down the hall to her room, where they said their good nights and departed for the night.

Zuko couldn't help himself, the time seemed right for some reason, as Mai turned to walk into her room, he softly spoke her name. She turned to the sound, slight confusion on her face.

"Yes Zuko?"

Zuko smiled slightly before pulling Mai in for a brief hug. "Thank you for today." He smiled once more; "It was... fun"

He pulled back for a few moments and looked into her eyes. She was blushing, that and smiling, and she was beautiful. "You're welcome." Feeling the heat in her cheeks Mai quickly turned around and closed the door, an almost silent goodnight escaping her lips as she did so."

* * *

><p><strong>an sorry for the fight scene guys, i was never that good at writing fist fights, fire bending, and swords are more my style, i was actually thinking about writing a A/U inwhich when Zuko pushed roun-jian into the vase, he challenges zuko to an agni kai, which both Ty lee and Mai tell him to decline, while Azula encourages it, stating that she had heard roun-jian was an accomplished fire bender, and it would be good for her too see how Zuko was coming along. while at the same time chan is thinking the opposite, telling roun-jian that hes an idiot for challenging him, and 30 minutes before the fight, chan finds out who zuko really is, and when he warns roun-jian, it makes him even more determined to beat zuko. let me know how you guys feel about me writing that.**

**i was also thinking about writing a one shot for Ryu, who is the O/C im using in my future stories, and when i write that one shot, it will give you all some information about who he is and such. thats if you want of course. but i will most likely write it anyway, and those who want to can read it.**

**but back to the fight, the reason i gave Zuko the ability to beat both roun-jian and chan is because, 1- who the hell is more determined than zuko? there for he uses that to attack them both, and push himself to beat them both. 2- did you see how simply he sent roun-jian across the room with such a small push? clearly with strength like that, he would be able to beat them both comfortably.**

**and yes Zuko is starting to like Mai, but shes leaving which is going to effect him later on.  
>Azula is much nicer to Zuko because in this story i cant be bothered writing her as the bitch she is.<br>and more will be revealed about Zuko's scar later on. thanks for reading.**

**chapter dedicated to meandcartoon22 for her demand on updating ;D **


	4. Chapter 4

**Vulnerable.  
>Chapter four:<br>Remembrance.**

* * *

><p>It was late morning when Zuko removed himself from his bed sheets and walked downstairs into the kitchen. It was empty when he arrived, well empty other than the note on the kitchen counter letting Zuko know the girls had gone down to the beach and would be there most of the day.<p>

Azula had decided when they came that they would be staying both nights of the weekend on Ember Island and leave midday on Sunday, She had also decided that Zuko would be joining her and the girls for dinner at one of the most formal places on the normally casual island.

Zuko grabbed a few pieces of fruit from the platter in the fridge and walked out the front door onto the beach. As he walked out the door he saw Ty Lee doing handstands along the coast while Azula stood knee deep in the water. It took Zuko a moment to notice that Mai was lying under an umbrella, watching the waves as they crashed against the shoreline.

Zuko removed his socks and pulled off the pants he had on over his shorts and began walking towards Mai. "Someone looks like they need some enjoyment?" He called as he got closer.

Mai turned towards the sound of his voice, "Well good morning sleepy head."

"Why aren't you enjoying the water?"

"Cause there was no one to enjoy it with." Mai said as she flicked the tiny grains of sand at Zuko.

"Oh no you didn't." Zuko said laughing as Mai stood up and began running in the opposite direction to the other girls, Zuko scooped up a handful of sand and chased after her, his involvement in the school track team caused him to catch up to her in a few minutes, he lightly threw the sand at her legs before picking her up bridal style and walking towards the ocean.

"Put me down." Mai said loudly smacking her palm against Zuko's bare chest.

Before she could get free of his grasp he lowered himself into the water, quickly he dunked her under and then pulled her back out, laughing he placed her on her feet just in time for her to splash water all over him. "That wasn't fair" Mai called loudly as she continued her relentless splashes directed at Zuko, it was obvious she wasn't going to be able to lift him up and drop him into the water, and being able to tackle him down would be a struggle all on its own, let alone the fact that she would be brought under with him.

The smile on Mai's face was one that only Zuko could bring, she knew that, but there was no way she would admit it.

Azula watched from where she stood in the water as Mai continued to splash Zuko as he tried to get closer, probably to bring her under again, or maybe to try stop her splashing, Azula didn't know, but she couldn't help but notice their happiness, Mai was never much of a talker, she could blame that on her parents, but with Zuko, she seemed different, maybe they were good for each other.

Zuko quickly dived under the water, as he swam closer to Mai he picked her up and stood up out of the water, Mai over his right shoulder while he held her tightly with one arm. Once again he went under the water and brought Mai along too. When he finally brought the two of them out once more, the glare he received sent a shiver down his spine.

Slowly he put Mai down so that she was standing on her two feet; he looked her in the eyes, a sly grin on his face. "Zuko."

"Yes Mai?"

"You're dead." Mai quickly jumped out of the water, and landed on Zuko's upper body, legs wrapped around his waist, while her arms were over his shoulders. Being caught off guard Zuko stumbled backwards until together they fell into the water.

Mai, now hanging much more loosely to Zuko, was pulled up out of the water as Zuko quickly stood up. She let go and landed gracefully on her feet, making the tiniest of splashes as she did so, they were both drenched from head to toe, sand stuck to their bodies and they were both blushing from the previous contact.

Zuko quickly shook his head, shaking the water from his hair as he did so. "Thanks for that." Zuko said as he splashed Mai.

"Jerk" Mai said softly as she used both hands to match the water splashed at her.

The two continued their little "battle" as the morning passed and it was almost 2:30 when Azula called for them to go back to the house and eat, since she had asked her personal chef to cook fresh fish from the market and ordered chips from the local stores.

Zuko walked into the house and headed up to the second floor, in the direction of his personal bath room, Mai did the same, except of course, in the direction of her own room.

Zuko washed the grains of sand from his legs and feet, as well as the sand that had stuck to his upper body. He removed his shorts and pulled on a pair of white tracksuit pants and a grey sleeveless t-shirt with a hood. Cleaned up and ready for lunch, Zuko walked down the stairs and took a seat at the dining table, across from Mai, and a few spaces away from both Azula and Ty Lee.

The large fish was set in the middle of the table while around it sat two large bowls filled with chips that had been brought in by the chef when she brought the fish, next to the bowls of fish sat a range of different salads, each with a different set of ingredients.

The meal went along mostly silent, the group shared small talk at first, but mostly their minds were on separate things. Zuko gave Jin some more thought, it had been almost 24 hours since he had done so, and all though he was proud of that, he still couldn't help but wonder what she was doing, during their time together they had been nothing but close, always talking, always communicating, and always on each other's minds.

When had things gone so wrong?

It was the question that ran through Zuko's mind more times than any others. Of course he had noticed things were changing, well Jin to be exact. At first, when things started to go downhill, she would at least smile when he was around, she always seemed happier. But as time passed she changed, the smile wasn't there as much, her attitude towards him changed, and sometimes, she would just walk away when Zuko was half way thought talking to her. Two months ago she had gone with her closest friends, Yue and Smeller Bee, to Houng Island, she was gone for a few days, and she only ever returned Zuko's texts late at night, sometimes when Zuko was already in bed.

When she returned she didn't speak about her trip much, but she was happier. Whenever Yue or Smeller Bee walked past they would laugh quietly and Jin would quickly hush them. Zuko knew something had happened, but he cared about Jin's privacy, and he wouldn't pry. If she wanted to speak to him about it she would have.

Zuko placed a chip in his mouth as he continued to stare at his food, his state of mind was all over the place, and he was beginning to worry about how he would be in a week or so if this continued. He would be much worse when Mai left, that would be a hard time. She had brought out happiness in him, happiness in a time when everything seemed so dark.

Why would Jin cheat though, they had been happy with each other, what really bothered Zuko about it, was the fact that they were never sexually intimate, both remaining virgins throughout their relationship, but the cheating bitch had thrown that away when she slept with someone else.

"They deserve each other" It was meant to be a thought, it was, but somehow the words escaped his lips and the three girls sitting around the table all looked up at him.

"Who Zu Zu?" Azula asked as she placed her fork down on her plate and continued looking in her brother's direction.

"No one" Zuko said quietly and placed another chip in his mouth.

"Zuko, tell us, were your friends we want to help." Ty lee said, her constant optimism sometimes came in handy, especially when she was trying to help.

"Jin and that jerk she's sleeping with." Zuko said as he stood up and walked quickly out of the room. The three girls looked at each other before Mai decided it would be best for her to talk to him, since she was the one who had really made the difference to him since they had begun talking only a few days before.

* * *

><p>Zuko slammed the door to his room shut and climbed onto his bed. A slow stream of warm tears made their way down his face as he looked out the large window from the spot he was laying. There was a quick knock on the door before Mai opened it and walked in.<p>

"Zuko." Mai looked at the boy whose figure was slightly shaking and was clearly in a lot of emotional pain. "I'm here for you, you remember that right?"

"Yes Mai, of course." It took Zuko a moment to answer, but when he did his voice was croaky and sounded unused; Mai climbed onto the end of the bed and placed her hand on Zuko's leg.

"Wanna talk about it?"

"Not right now." Zuko said as he rolled over and planted his face into the pillows.

Mai sat there in silence for a moment, trying to think of something she could say to improve her friend's mood. "Remember, you still have to take us out for dinner tonight, you can't leave me alone when those two."

"I'll be there." Zuko said simply as he continued to weep.

More silence followed as Mai thought again of something to say, it took her longer this time, at first she didn't think she would come up with anything, minutes of silence passed and Zuko's mood didn't improve in the slightest.

"Zuko, when I go to Omashu, I don't want you doing anything stupid, you understand me?"

Zuko didn't answer at first, fresh tears made their way down his face at the mention of her soon departure. "I'll try."

Mai tightened her grip on Zuko's leg, "No getting involved with the wrong crowds, just stay yourself, and when I get back, make sure your at least somewhat happier, I don't want you ruining my home warming party."

Mai was surprised when she heard a soft chuckle come from Zuko, "Promise" Zuko said, his voice seemed happier but he hadn't faced Mai yet.

"Come on, let's go finish our lunch." Mai said as she stood up from the bed, waiting for Zuko to do the same, like a lot of the things he had been doing the past few minutes it took Zuko a while to find the will to stand up, but when he did the tears were no longer running down his cheeks, it looked much like he hadn't even started crying.

* * *

><p>When it was finally time for them to go out for dinner they piled inside Zuko's car, all dressed in the best clothes they had found in all the stores they rummaged through on the island. Zuko wore a white suit shirt, the long sleeves restricted to his elbow by a clear button, a simple black tie stretched from his neck down to around the bottom of his stomach, with black suit pants, and a black suit jacket that was currently sitting in the middle of the back seat, with all the other jackets the group had brought along. Mai wore a maroon tight fitting dress with a grey sash and a short length black jacket. Azula wore a deep red loose fitting dress with gold trimming and maroon flowers. Ty lee wore a white dress that clung to her upper body and ran loosely around her legs with a pink sash and pink trimming.<p>

The drive was a quick one as Zuko pulled into the car park, few spaces were left and it took a few moments for them to finally find a space. The group walked together towards the front entrance of the restaurant. A waiter took them to a table in the far corner of the dining hall.

Zuko sat down across from Mai, while Ty lee and Azula sat across from each other. After their meal Ty lee was dragged off by a young man she had met during their time there, while Azula was off talking with an old friend, leaving Zuko and Mai alone.

"So." Zuko said as he looked at Mai with thoughtful eyes. "When are you leaving for Omashu?" Just asking the question caused Zuko pain but he was able to keep his features even, making sure she didn't sense his discomfort.

"Well I need to finish packing tomorrow, and some of my stuff needs to be taken to my aunts, while the rest will be taken into storage. And then mother said we will be leaving on the 19th. Three days." Mai's face darkened slightly, and her eyes widened showing the barest hint of sadness.

"Need help moving?" Zuko asked calmly but inside he was going insane.

Mai looked deep into Zuko's eyes and smiled. "That would be nice."

* * *

><p>"They look comfortable together."<p>

"Who?"

"Your brother and that girl his with"

"Oh, Ye hi guess they do." Azula answered looking back at her table where her best friend, and her brother sat talking.

"Are they, you know, together?"

Azula returned her gaze back to the man before her. "You know, I don't actually know."

"Seems like they might be, if not then there is defiantly feelings there for each other."

"I think your right Jet." Azula said placing a quick kiss on his cheek.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**  
><strong>guys im sorry.<br>like really sorry.  
>this chapter has been mostly written for the last 2 months or more, just I kept getting stuck on parts, and as you can tell the ending is really choppy, i just didn't know how to write it, so eventually i just made the parts i had to, more crappy, and but as much detail as i could in where ever possible.<strong>

**this is a story i hope to continue writing for quite awhile, because the idea of it really stands out to me, and this isn't always going to be such a depressing story, that much i can promise.**

**Im hoping to publish another chapter of btt tonight, so make sure you look out for that, should be done sometime after this is published, and it will have some pretty important news to come with it. **


	5. Chapter 5

**Vulnerable**

**Chapter 5 Farewell**

* * *

><p>Zuko placed the last of Mai's boxes in his car, some of her things would be going with her to Omashu, but everything that wasn't needed or she could live without Zuko was taking down to storage so that they could be easily transported to her aunts when she moved back. "Is that all I'm taking this time?" Zuko asked as he closed the back door of his car.<p>

"That'll be all." Mai said climbing into the front passenger seat.

Zuko drove out of the long driveway, past the moving truck, and Mai's father's BMW. As soon as he was past the street and Mai's parents could no longer see them, he sped up almost 20mph over the speed limit. Zuko and Aang had done a lot of driving before they finally got their licences the year before, making them know the streets around their small town well.

Mai had gotten used to his driving and now trusted him enough to keep her safe, Zuko wouldn't drive that way if there was a chance of her getting hurt.

* * *

><p>They got to the storage sheds pretty quickly and Mai pointed out where things should go as Zuko carried it all and placed it all inside the small garage like room, there wasn't anyone else at the storage compound as Zuko pulled the roller door shut for the last time until Mai returned in a little over a month. "Thanks for that Zuko." Mai climbed into the passenger seat, Zuko passed her the key and drove back towards Mai's now old home to see the last of the boxers being piled into the moving truck by hired removalists.<p>

Zuko drove up the long drive way once more and parked to the side of the truck, Hoshi, Mai's father approached Zuko's car as the two teens got out. "Mai we are about to leave, say goodbye to your friend."

"Yes father." Mai said obediently as Hoshi turned and walked away, back behind the truck where she could no longer see him. She then walked to the front of the car and was met by Zuko. "Im going to miss you." Mai looked up into Zuko's eyes and he quickly pulled her in for a hug.

"I'll miss you too Mai." He let go of the hug then before either of them began to enjoy it more than a hug from one friend to another.

"Are you sure you can't be there tonight?" Mai asked looking up into his saddened eyes.

Zuko nodded softly, "The guys are going to kill me if I don't make the show tonight. Though, if it wasn't such an important night for us, I would ditch any other show to see you before you left."

Mai looked down at her feet, not wanting to let Zuko see her disappointment. "Of course."

"What are you doing after lunch?"

Mai looked back up at Zuko to answer him, "My parents are taking me to say goodbye to relatives."

Zuko thought for a moment, "Im going to go talk to them, give me a moment." And with that Zuko walked off quickly to find Hoshi, who was standing just inside the front door with his wife, Akira.

"Hello Zuko, is there something we could do for you?" Akira asked as she saw the teen approaching. Akira had always enjoyed Mai spending time with Azula, and especially Zuko, having a child who had close ties with the governors children was something that deeply helped Hoshi and Akira's social standing, but having a child dating one of the governors children would give them power other's didn't have. Though she wasn't quite sure Mai was actually with Zuko, it didn't matter now, Hoshi himself was a governor, giving them their own level of publicity.

"Do you mind if I take Mai out with me this afternoon, she will be at the airport before you leave, and since she will be returning in just a few weeks, Im sure your family will be okay with not seeing her this afternoon." Zuko said standing a few feet away from the middle aged couple.

Hoshi looked to his wife for an answer, "Im sure that will be okay. Though she must not miss the plane."

Zuko nodded and then walked out, he didn't like Mai's parents, she didn't speak of them much, but when she did, they were words of betrayal, and hate. Zuko knew they were using Mai to get further up the social ladder, they believed she was useless, but really, they would be nothing without her. Mai and Azula's friendship then led onto Ozai giving his word in having Hoshi become CEO of a local bank, without Ozai's input Hoshi and Akira would still be living in a small town house in a busy part of town.

As Zuko returned to Mai she saw the small smile on his lips, "what have you done?" She asked smiling back herself.

"After lunch, your parents are going to bring you to my house. You're going to spend the afternoon with me and the guys."

Mai was slightly shocked that her parents had agreed to something like that. "H-How did you get them to be okay with this?"

Zuko chuckled, "I have my ways." He winked at her then as he opened his car door. "So, 1:30, will you be there?"

Mai nodded, "ofcourse."

* * *

><p>Zuko sat on the couch in his recording studio, his best friends as well as band members sitting in various chairs around him. Rumours were passed around saying that members from Be sing se records, as well as Laogai recording studio, were going to be at the show, to be contracted by either of the two companies would be all that the small band needed to get their band from local hero's to worldwide legends.<p>

"Come on Zuko, please tell me you've finished that song, we really need it rehearsed and recorded for tonight." One of the band members called from a chair on the other side of the room.

"Sokka, please, give me some time, this isn't as easy as it looks." Zuko was in charge of writing the lyrics to their songs, once that was finished Aang and Haru would make the beat for the song that would then be played by the band.

"How hard can it be to write down a bunch of meaningful words?"

Aang slapped his right palm to his face at the stupidness of Sokka's words. "Sokka, leave Zuko alone, thinking of the right words for the right moment is a hard thing to do, and with the pressure he is already under, I don't think you complaining will help at all."

"Thanks Aang." Zuko said as he wrote down a few more words to the song. The band mainly sung covers, but at the end of every show, they would perform their own song, just to mix things up and to prove that they know how to make their own songs.

"Anyone up for some pizza?" Haru asked as he pulled out his phone and looked at the pizza business card Zuko had pinned up on a board behind the small bar like set up.

"What a stupid question" Sokka said, and without even being told Haru ordered one large pizza with almost all of the toppings.

"Zuko, you hungry?" Haru asked covering the mouth piece with his hand.

"Umm, I'll have a medium pepperoni."

Haru added that to the list as well. "Aang?"

"No thanks, I ate before."

Haru ordered his pizza, gave the woman the address and hung up. "So, the song?"

"Last few lines are being done now." Zuko said as he tapped his pen against his lip.

* * *

><p>Mai rung the door bell and heard loud footsteps coming down the stairs a few minutes later. Haru pulled the door open and was surprised to see Mai standing there and not the pizza delivery person. "Um Hey, do you mind me asking who you are?" Haru asked having not met her before.<p>

"I'm a friend of Zuko's he told me to come over this afternoon."

"Sorry missy, but Zuko's busy at the moment. You might have to come back later." Haru said and began closing the door.

Mai pulled out her phone and wrote a quick message to Zuko, who almost instantly came down the stairs and reopened the door for her. "Hey Mai, sorry about Haru." Zuko said as he closed the door behind her. "You thirsty?"

"No" Mai said as she walked more into the foyer, "Im guessing the guys don't know Im coming then?" Mai smirked as Zuko's face went blank.

"W-Were not supposed to bring guests to practice." Zuko said his face regaining composure.

Mai giggled quietly and began walking up the stairs, a speechless Zuko behind her. Zuko opened the door to the recording studio, and Mai walked in with him. "Guys, this is Mai, Mai these are the idiots I spend my time with."

"Thanks Zuko." Haru said sarcastically.

"Hey, you should think of it as a compliment" Zuko joked as he brought Mai over to sit with him on the two seated couch he was previously on. "Mai this is Haru." Zuko said pointing to Haru who was sitting at a stool drinking a can of soda. "That would be Sokka" He said pointing to Sokka who was laying half asleep on the lounge chair across from them. "And that freak is Aang." Zuko said pointing to the ceiling where Aang was hanging upside down from a metal beam that ran across the roof.

"Hi" Mai said looking at the three strange friends Zuko had.

* * *

><p>"Haru, how's it sounding?" Aang asked from where he was sitting on the lounge chair.<p>

"Pretty good man, it should go well with everything else we are playing tonight." Haru said as he wrote down more notes and fiddled with the sounds on his computer that the band would soon recreate with their own instruments. "Zuko, im going to need you to get one of the spare base guitars tuned just for this song though, mine won't be able to reach the low notes properly."

"No worries." Zuko answered standing up and walking over to a cupboard at the back of the room, he pulled the nearest base guitar out and began fiddling with it until it matched the sounds emitting from Haru's laptop. Mai watched from her seat beside Zuko, the empty pizza boxes on the table in the centre and small pieces of paper everywhere with lyrics and musical notes beside them. Sokka and Aang were now in the booth, Sokka practising the drums while Aang on the keyboard and singing, preparation for the night's performance. Aang mainly sung back up for either Zuko or Haru and played guitar and Keyboard, whichever was needed for the song they were performing. Sokka was their drummer and did a very small amount of back up singing. Haru was their Main singer and base guitarist, whilst Zuko sang some songs and was the main Guitarist.

They were a entertaining group of people and Mai had started to feel comfortable around them. They were interesting and different, and they made Zuko happy even in his darkest time. The song they were working on was almost complete when it was time for Mai to leave. Zuko escorted her downstairs and to Aang's car. "I'm going to miss you." Zuko said quietly as the both climbed in. "And I apologize for not being able to be with you when you leave."

"Zuko its fine, I'll miss you too." Mai replied placing her hand on Zuko's leg as they left the mansion in the direction of the airport.

They spoke about simple things, things like school, and their future, and the future of Zuko's band. It wasn't until they were almost at the airport that Zuko had the idea of Mai moving in with them when she returned.

"I'm sure my Dad would be okay with it, you're almost always with us anyway, and there is plenty of room for you in the house." Zuko said, helping to convince Mai who was a little unsure.

"But what if when I return you or Azula doesn't want to see me that often."

Zuko looked at her whilst he was parked at a red light, "I don't believe you understand how much i have come to care for you Mai."

Mai blushed as she stared back into his eyes. "I'll ask my parents, thank you Zuko." She looked towards the road, "I care for you too." She whispered, too quiet for him to hear.

They didn't talk much for the rest of the drive, both realizing what was really happening. Omashu was in the middle of the Earth kingdom half way across the world, a town that had been discovered by Fire nation explorers in the 15th century, governing this settlement was Hoshi's dream, one that was finally been realized for him thanks to the efforts of Zuko's father. When Mai first found out about her father's promotion she tried everything she could to change his mind and she wasn't successful until she brought up Azula, and how rude it would be to take Azula's best friend away from her, Hoshi almost had the same amount of political power as Ozai, but still feared him.

* * *

><p>Zuko stood at the back of the airport, staring out the huge window that took up the entire wall and watched Mai's plane take off. His performance was starting in an hour and he was going to be late if he didn't rush, but he couldn't move away from the window, a small tear running down his left cheek.<p>

Moments before he left his spot by the window he allowed his mind to wander, it was dangerous to do so, so much had happened lately to bring him down.

He thought of Jin, how she had upset him so. His thoughts moved to how his sister had become far more compassionate and more like his wise, older sister, rather than his pesky little sister that enjoyed tormenting him. finally he thought of Mai, and how much he loved her. Yes, his thoughts were dangerous, and he finally allowed them all in. Zuko, was in love, with Mai.

* * *

><p><strong>If you waited for this. Then I am very sorry for making you wait.<br>If you're a new reader, than I hope you enjoyed and don't have to experience what i put the older readers through. I will be sure to let you guys know if I take a break like this again, hopefully i don't.  
>this is probably the only story i will frequently update, but i have no schedule to go off. i hope you enjoy. <strong>


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